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SPORTSARie Cliarlotte ^o«t
Thursday, December 1, 2005
2005 NEXTEL
CUP WINNERS
Feb. 20 Daytona 500
Jeff Gordon
Feb. 27 - Auto Club 500
Greg Biffle
March 13 - UAW-Chrysler 400
Jimmie Johnson
March 20 — Golden Corral 500
Carl Edwards
April 3 — Food City 500
Kevin Harvick
April 10 — Advance Auto Parts 500
Jeff Gordon
April 17 — Samsung/RadioShack 500
Greg Biffle
April 23 — Subway Fresh 500
Kurt Busch
May 1 — Aaron’s 499
Jeff Gordon
May 7 — Dodge Charger 500
Greg Biffle
May 14 — Chevy Revolution 400
Kasey Kahne
May 29 — Coca-Cola 600
Jimmie Johnson
June 5 — MBNA RacePoints 400
Greg Biffle
June 12 — Pocono 500
Carl Edwards
June 19 — Batman Begins 400
Greg Biffle
June 26 — Dodge/Save Mart 350
Tony Stewart
July 2 — Pepsi 400
Tony Stewart
July 10 — USG Sheetrock 400
Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
July 17 — New England 300
Tony Stewart
July 24 — Pennsylvania 500
Kurt Busch
Aug. 7 — Allstate 400
Tony Stewart
Aug. 14 — Sirius at The Glen
Tony Stewart
Aug. 21 — GFS Marketplace 400
Jeremy Mayfield
Aug. 27 — Sharpie 500
Matt Kenseth
Sept. 4 — Sony HD 500
Kyle Busch
Sept. 10 — Chevy Rock & Roll 400
Kurt Busch
Sept. 18 — Sylvania 300
Ryan Newman
Sept. 25 - MBNA 400
Jimmie Johnson
Oct. 2 - UAW-Ford 500
Dale Jarrett
Oct. 9 — Banquet 400
Mark Martin
Oct. 15 - UAW-GM Quality 500
Jimmie Johnson
Oct. 23 — Subway 500
Jeff Gordon
Oct. 30 — Bass Pro Shops
MBNA 500
Carl Edwards
Nov. 6 — Dickies 500
Carl Edwards
Nov. 13 — Checker Auto Parts 500
Kyle Busch
Nov. 20 - Ford 400
Greg Biffle
WIN LEADERS
Greg Biffle, 6
Tony Stewart, 5
Carl Edwards, 4
Jeff Gordon, 4
Jimmie Johnson, 4
Kurt Busch, 3
Kyle Busch, 2
Dale Earnhardt, Jr,
Kevin Harvick, 1
Dale Jarrett, 1
Kasey Kahne, 1
Matt Kenseth, 1
Mark Martin, 1
Jeremy Mayfield, 1
Ryan Nevyman, 1
CHASE to
REMEMBER
By RICK MINTER / Cox News Service
F rom Tony Stewart’s ascent to the champi
onship, Kurt Busch’s brush with the law .
and subsequent suspension, the 2005
NASCAR Chase for the Championship was
filled with excitement.
Here is a review of some of the highs and lows
of this year’s Chase.
THE HIGHS
• The formula for the Chase wound up putting the cir
cuit’s hottest drivers in contention foL the title. Even
though Chase drivers comprised less than a quarter of
the starting field each weel^ they won seven of the final
10 races.
Of the 50 possible top-five finishing positions in the
final 10 races, 36 were taken by Chase drivers, while 58
of the 100 possible top-10 finishes went to drivers in the
title hunt.
• Tony Stewart, the
driver who has been
the most visible, most
talked-about driver all
season, woimd up as
champion.
His second title came
in a year in which he
not only remade his
image — from bad boy
to contented superstar
— but also achieved his
lifelong goals of win
ning at Indianapolis
Motor Speedway, his
home track, and
Daytona International
Speedway.
Photos by DAMON HIGGINS / Cox News Service
NASCAR fans pass a sign promoting the Chase while
entering Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 20.
THE LOWS
• Kurt Busch’s run-in with Arizona sheriff’s deputies and
his resulting suspension from the final two races was a dis
traction from the points race and an embarrassment for
NASCAR.
After all, he was the defending series champion, a con
tender in this year’s Chase and was expected to participate
in the ceremony crowning his successor.
Tony Stewart celebrates his
championship winnings.
• The grinding of the track at Lowe’s Motor Speedway was
intended to facilitate more passing. Instead, it caused a rash of
blown tires and crashes, so many that, at one point, NASCAR
officials considered ending the race early. Once again, the focus
was taken off the Chase.
• Mark Martin’s late-career, late-season
surge was equally popular in the garage
and grandstands as both peers and fans
celebrated his success.
His win at Kansas Speedway came a
week after he was swept up in a crash at
Talladega Superspeedway that essentially
ruined his chance to win his first Nextel
Cup championship. Then he came within a
few feet of winning the season finale at
Homestead.
• Jimmie Johnson won at Dover in
the second Chase race, but his win
was tainted because his car was
equipped with trick shocks that effec
tively circumvented NASCAR’s
height rules. Although Johnson was
n’t penalized, series officials changed
the shock rules and the incident took
attention from the championship
hunt.
Mark Martin’s crew rolls out
the No. 6 Ford from the
• By simply making the field for the
Chase, the retiring Rusty Wallace
and the soon-to-be retired Martin
gave their legions of fans reason to
follow the title run.
Both were competitive in the
Chase, with Wallace as high as sec
ond in points after Dover, and Martin'
winning at Kansas and finishing sec
ond at Homestead.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (8) started 40th,
but worked his way to a 19th-place
finish in the season-ending Ford 400.
• 'Diere’a little doubt that the
Chase lost some of its luster
because the sport’s two biggest
stars, Jeff Gordon and Dale
Earnhardt Jr, weren’t a part of
it. But both drivers supported
the formula, saying they didn’t
deserve a shot at the title this
year.
• Carl Edwards, a refreshing
new face on the NASCAR
scene, sped to back-to-back
wins at Atlanta Motor
Speedway and Texas Motor
Speedway, earning a long-shot
chance at the championship
and pleasing fans with his dra
matic runs on the track and his
trademark back-flips after
ward.
Carl Edwards
(right) chats
with his crew at
Homestead,
Edwards fin
ished third in
the Cfiase.
• The inevitable Big Wreck at
Talladega in the third race of the
Chase wiped out Martin’s Ford,
effectively ending his title run.
Other incidents left con
tenders Johnson, Wallace and
Greg Biffle with finishes outside
the top 20 and others question
ing the wisdom of having a
restrictor^plate race in the final
10 Chase events.
POINTS LEADERS
Tony Stewart, 6,533
Greg Biffle, 6,498
Carl Edwards, 6,498
Mark Martin, 6.428
Jimmie Johnson, 6,406
Ryan Newman, 6,359
Matt Kenseth, 6,352
Rusty Wallace, 6,140
Jeremy Mayfield, 6,073
Kurt Busch, 5,974
Jeff Gordon, 4,174
Jamie McMurray, 4,130
Elliott Sadler, 4,084
Kevin Harvick, 4,072
Dale Jarrett, 3,960
Joe Nemechek, 3,953
Brian Vickers. 3,847
Jeff Burton, 3,803
Dale Earnhardt Jr, 3,780
Kyle Busch, 3,753
MONEY LEADERS
Tony Stewart, $6,987,530
Jett Gordon, $6,855,440
Jimmie Johnson, $6,796,660
Kurt Busch, $6,516,320
Mark Martin, $5,994,350
Matt Kenseth, $5,790,770
Dale Earnhardt Jr, $5,761,830
Greg Bittle, $5,729,930
Ryan Newman, $5,578,110
Elliott Sadler, $5,024,120
Kevin Harvick, $4,970,050
Carl Edwards, $4,889,990
Kasey Kahne, $4,874,840
Rusty Wallace. $4,868,980
Dale Jarrett, $4,705,440
Bobby Labonte, $4,627,400 '
Jeremy Mayfield, $4,566,910
Michael Waltrip, $4,375,090
Ricky Rudd, $4,300,410
Jett Burton, $4,265,670
LAPS LED
Tony Stewart, 1,845
Greg Biffle, 1.322
Matt Kenseth, 998
Kurt Busch, 958
Jimmie Johnson, 547
Jeff Gordon, 581
Carl Edwards, 434
Kasey Kahne, 430
Ryan Newman. 391
Elliott Sadler, 383
POLE WINNERS
Ryan Newman, 8
Elliott Sadler, 4
Tony Stewart, 4
Carl Edwards, 2
Jeff Gordon, 2
Kevin Harvick, 2
Kasey Kahne, 2
Matt Kenseth, 2
Kyle Busch, 1
Denny Hamlin, 1
Dale Jarrett, 1
Jimmie Johnson, 1
Jamie McMurray,' 1
Joe Nemecheck, 1
Scott Riggs. 1
Michael Waltrip, 1
Brian Vickers, 1
MANUFACTURER
STANDINGS
Wins in parentheses
Chevrotet, 259(17)
Ford, 246(16)
Dodge. 179 (3),
ROOKIE
Kyle Busch, 349
Travis Kvapil, 268
’05 Cup champion Stewart
ready to take on Manhattan
P lenty has ‘changed in
NASCAR since Tony
Stewart won his first Cup
championship in 2002, but one
thing remains the same: a whirl
wind visit to New Yoric to celebrate
the title.
Stewart will have a busy sched
ule this week as he embaiks on the
media interviews and guest
appearances associated with
“Nextel Cup Champion’s Week pre
sented by Sprint , ”
Highlights of the week will
include the traditional champion’s
photo shoot in 'Rmes Square aixl a
“Series Victory Lap,” in >rifrch the
top-10 cars are paraded though the
city.
Stewart and other Cha.se con
tenders will also appear at various
Manhattan landmaiks, such as the
New York Stock Exchange, a train
ing f^ality for the New Yoik Fire
Department. the Ronald
McDonald House, area hospitals,
various fan events, nightclubs,
media luncheons and television
shows broadcast from New Yoik.
The week of activities will culmi-
Nextel Cup Series
Awards Ceremony
Where: The Waldorf-Astoria
Hotel, New York
When: Friday, 7-10:30 p.m. ET
Television: TNT, 9 p.m. ET
Radio: MRN/XM satellite
Special guest: ComedianUay
f^r
Musical guests: Toni 6ra)rten,
Gavin DeGraw, jazz pianist Eric
Lewis
DON'T WAIT FOR YOUR W-2.
GET A
MOniEY MOW
LOAM TODAY!
nate with the annual NASCAR
Nextel Cup Series Awards
Ceremony Friday night at The
Waldorf-Astoria’s Grand Ballroom.
The televised event, featuring
special guest Jay Mohr, will honor
champion Stewart, the other nine
drivers in the Chase and the 11th-
place driver, Jeff Gordon.
— Source; NASCAR
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Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate for Cox News Service. (800) 255-6734. 'For release the week of November 28, 2005.
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